New York City is a place for doing many things, and one of those things is contemplation. In one of the largest cities in the world, there are still plenty of places where one can be by themselves and either think or just chill. Of course, one is always in the company of the ubiquitous pigeon, who may also be contemplating as they bob their heads looking for food. They, too, may be pondering serious subjects to which we have no access, but we similarly have no access to those who have chosen to sit by themselves and while in thought, both being as they should.

I have never lived in a large city but have always access to one. It seems to me that the larger the city, the lonelier one can get. This image was photographed while on one of my forays to New York City, where many people relax while on their own, perhaps following the movements of the resident pigeons.

I guess my retirement is official now. I have taken a Baseball vacation for many years (I see how many Minor League games can be watched during my time off, take a panoramic during the game, and post it on my website – I’ve got 65 images so far and will be adding 10 more soon) and I considered this one to be a regular vacation. Upon my return I now have time to work on things that I consider to be important.

This image was photographed in Modesto, California toward the end of the game. I had been sitting on the first base side because the temperature at the beginning of the game was in the mid-90s and this afforded me a little shade, and toward the end of the game I wandered over to the third base side, noticing that the stars (okay, two planets and the moon) were aligned for the Modesto Nuts.

The game went into extra innings, and at the top of the 11th inning High Desert scored a run. However, in the bottom of the inning Modesto scored two runs to win the game.

Before working as a programmer I was an electronics technician, and the second job I had in that field was with Bendix. At that place there was another technician who constantly complained about pretty much everything. At one point he was on one of his “I’ll leave this place and then they’ll be sorry” rants when I asked him how long it took for him to learn the testing machine. He only worked on one area of the testing (actually, at one time or another I worked in all areas of the KG-84A testing and troubleshooting), which was a machine that did pretty much everything for him, so when he proudly replied, “It only took me 15 minutes to learn this job,” I told him that that was how long it would take the company to replace him.

That’s what I thought when I came across this scene in Pittsburgh a couple of weekends ago. We can all be replaced without too much effort.

Of course, that came home to me because today is my last day of work, as I am happily retiring. Even though I have worked at Space Telescope Science Institute for a bit over five years (I still consider myself to be a newbie, as many people have been there for one or two decades), I will be quickly and easily replaced, with someone else taking my duties. That is how it has been with my other jobs, and that is how it will be with this last one.

This is a bit of an exciting time for me. I will start off with my standard Baseball vacation, where I see as many minor league games as possible, shoot a panoramic during each game, and post it to my website. I have 65 ballparks there now and if the weather cooperates I will be able to add 10 more. After that I will be able to spend more time with my photography and will return to writing music, something I left behind many years ago because of time constraints. With that no longer being an issue, I expect to be busy with my passions, as opposed to things that just pay the bills.

During our trip to Scotland we needed to find a place between Inverness and Edinburgh to stay so my wife randomly selected Pitlochry. This place had all the charm that one would hope, distilling the surrounding area into a step into a magical place where one would hope to get lost. At a workshop recently one person looked at this finished print and asked where it was located. When I told her that it was photographed in Pitlochry she smiled, having been there, and told me that when she died surely she would go there.

You will need to work with me on this image. My Bromoils are certainly different when viewed on the monitor as opposed to viewing in person. However, this image is so different on the monitor that I debated even bothering to post it, as the difference is incredibly wide. This is because the monitor is physically incapable of properly displaying the particular look of this print.

The reason for this is that this is a black and white image printed on translucent vellum backed by copper. On the monitor the color appears to be somewhat drab, but in person there is a copper shine throughout, so you will need to imagine the image brilliantly reflecting the color. At the workshop I also created a print backed with palladium and one backed with gold leaf, which was a wondrous sparkle, but just looks yellow on the monitor.

It happens to every child – the endless energy signals that it is time to momentarily shut down and allow the mind to try to figure out the world surrounding them. This happened once back in the 1980s to my son and I was able to photograph the moment. Certainly, only seconds later, I am sure that he was once again running around at top speed.

A good friend gave me a pack of old Kodak Ektalure, which is wonderful for the Bromoil process, and this was printed on that paper. It is great to be able to use paper that would otherwise find its way into the recycling pile.

To begin I would like to thank everyone who has bid on either of my prints. The response has been completely unexpected and very much appreciated.

To this end I am adding a third and final print on eBay, Encounters, which is one of my favorites. When making this particular print I decided to add a bit of raw sienna to the black ink to give it some color, something I do not normally do.

This print is now being offered on eBay with 100% of the proceeds going to the Red Cross to assist their help with the victims in Nepal. I will pay the shipping within the United States, so all of your efforts go toward helping those who need it the most.

To say that I have been overwhelmed by the response of my offering a print on eBay with all of the proceeds going to the Red Cross would be an understatement. I have done this in the past with mediocre (at best) results. This time I have been knocked over, which means that I have no choice but to offer another print.

I offered Urban Farm Worker on a previous post and am offering it now on eBay to anyone who would like to own a copy. All of the money bid will help the Red Cross respond to the tragedy in Nepal and I will pay for the shipping, so if you have been thinking of helping those on the other side of the world then this is a way to get something in return as a “Thank You!”.

Update: To anyone wishing to bid on a print, I have decided to offer Encounters in addition to this one.

The earthquake in Nepal has been devastating and aid workers are rushing to help. I am hoping to encourage people to give so I am offering this Bromoil print with 100% of the proceeds going to the Red Cross. I will pay the shipping within the United States. This means that you get an original piece of art just for helping those who need it the most.

If you would like to bid on this print then please go to eBay. You will be helping those who need it the most and will get a piece of art as a thank you.

Update: To anyone wishing to bid on a print, I have decided to offer Urban Farm Worker in addition to this one.

Another update: To anyone wishing to bid on a print, I have decided to offer Encounters in addition to this one.

During Worldwide Pinhole Day I knew I would be at an art fair, so I decided to use that as the location of my image. For the lensless aspect I decided to use a zone plate on a body cap of my old Nikon D70. As I wandered throughout the building looking for an appropriate location I realized that my focal length was too long for just about everything that I found interesting. This was compounded by the fact that I was looking at a two second exposure.

Fortunately, I was able to find a chair, which allowed me to steady the camera, and took a series of images of this jewelry booth, which I assembled in post. Doing things this way resulted in a pair of phantom legs, but I liked them so I decided to allow them to stay.